Bloch



Aug. 9, 1955 BLOC SAFETY HAND HOLD FOR BATH TUBS Filed Jan. 9, 1953 Ill lllll-lllllll 1 it. lll I: l

I II I I INVENTOR Leon Bloch,

BY 51/21/14 ATTORNEYS United States Patent Office 2,714,728 Patented Aug. 9, 1955 SAFETY HAND HOLD FOR BATH TUBS Leon Bloch, Cleveland, Ohio Application January 9, 1953, Serial No. 330,540

1 Claim. (Cl. 4-185) The present invention relates to a safety device for use on bath tubs, and particularly to a safety hand hold adapted to be attached to the wall of a bath tub and positioned to be grasped by a person while stepping into or out of the tub to prevent falling due to the slippery footing provided by the tub bottom.

The device of the present invention is a safety hand hold in the form of an upright hand grip' post that is secured to the top of a tub wall by means of a wall engaging saddle that can be dropped into position on the tub wall and that is provided with legs that straddle the tub wall. The wall straddling legs are rigidly attached to a seat member that is adapted to rest upon the top edge of the tub wall and to which the lower end of the upright hand grip post is attached. The wall straddling legs are of a length and width to provide a secure attachment for the hand grip member and to maintain the hand grip member in substantially upright position where it can be conveniently grasped by a person stepping into or out of the tub. The wall straddling legs are adjustable one toward and away from the other so as to vary the space between them to accommodate the device to tub walls of different thicknesses. The legs are adjusted to a spacing such that they will receive between them the top edge of the tub to which the device is to be applied, the fit of the tub wall between the wall straddling legs being sufficiently loose to permit the device to be removed from the tub by simply lifting it ofi.

Reference should be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a safety hand hold that embodies the invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the hand hold in place on a bath tub wall;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line indicated at 3--3 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on the line indicated at 44 in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on the line indicated at 55 in Fig. 4.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the device of the present invention has a hand grip member 1 which may be in the form of a tubular post with a knob 2 attached to its upper end. The lower end of the post 1 is rigidly attached to an elongated seat member in the form of a plate 3 that has a flat bottom adapted to rest upon the top edge of a bath tub wall. Extending downwardly from the plate 3 on opposite sides thereof are parallel legs 4 and 5 that straddle the bath tub wall. The legs 4 and 5 are of suflicient width to prevent lateral angular movements of the plate 4 and when these legs are in engagement with the inner and outer sides of the tub wall the supporting plate 3 rests on the top edge of the tub wall in longitudinal alinement therewith.

The legs 4 and 5 may be substantially identical, each being in the form of a rod bent to U-shape and having its ends rigidly attached to the plate 3 adjacent the opposite ends thereof to provide the legs with engaging portions directly below opposite end portions of the plate 3. To provide a convenient means of attachment each arm may have its ends bent laterally at substantially right angles to the plane of the U-shaped body. As shown, the leg 4 has laterally bent end portions 6 and the leg 5 has laterally bent end portions 7. The end portions 6 of the leg 4 are received in grooves 8 that extend transversely across the top face of the plate 3 and the ends 7 of the leg 5 are received in transverse grooves 9 that extend across the top face of the plate 3 parallel to and adjacent the grooves 8. The two pairs of grooves 8 and 9 are adjacent the opposite ends: of the plate 3, the width of the legs 4 and 5 being but slightly less than the length of the plate 3.

A clamping block 10 is provided adjacent each end of the plate 3 and the blocks 10 are provided with grooves 11 and 12 on their under faces that aline with the grooves 8 and 9 of the plate 3 and receive the ends 6 and 7 of the legs 4 and 5. Each of the blocks 10 is held in clamping engagement with the ends 6 and 7 of the legs 4 and 5 to rigidly secure the legs to the plate 3. The blocks 10 are held in clamping engagement with the ends 6 and 7 of the supporting legs by suitable means such as screws 13 which may be loosened to permit either or both of the supporting legs to be adjusted toward or away from the supporting plate 3 to increase or decrease the space between the legs.

In order to avoid marring of the tub wall the legs 4 and 5 may have rubber tubes 14 thereon which incase the portions of the legs that contact with the tub wall.

It is to be understood that in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, variations and modifications of the specific devices herein shown and described may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

A safety hand hold for bath tubs comprising an elongated plate for engagement with the top edge of a bath tub wall, said plate having a pair of transverse grooves across its upper face adjacent each end, two wall straddling legs, each in the form of a rod bent to U-shape and having its ends bent laterally and seated in two of said transverse grooves, one adjacent each end of said plate, a clamping block overlying each end of said plate, each block having a pair of grooves on its bottom face that aline with the grooves of said plate, screws for securing said blocks in clamping engagement with the laterally bent ends of said legs, and an upright hand grip member rigidly attached at its lower end to said plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 945,213 Blackburn Jan. 4, 1910 2,034,705 Anderson Mar. 24, 1936 2,045,815 Wiesjahn June 30, 1936 2,063,864 Zinkil Dec. 8, 1936 OTHER REFERENCES Life Magazine, page 58, vol. 26, January 31, 1940. 

